Five things we learned from Arsenal’s pre-season

Arsenal’s truncated pre-season, that included trips to New York and Austria, has now finished. The defeat to Monaco on Sunday in the Emirates Cup was the final game before the club face Manchester City in the Community Shield on Sunday.

The shift of focus towards the upcoming domestic campaign is welcome, but just what did we learn from Arsenal’s pre-season this year?

1. The World Cup messes everything up.

Yes, World Cups are fun while they are on, but as soon as they finish you start to realise how much they mess with a club’s preparation for the new season.

2. Pre-season games mean nothing.

Arsenal are neither the best in the world because they defeated Benfica 5-1 nor the worst in the world because they lost to the New York Red Bulls and Monaco. Pre-season is not about results, although a good one is always a boost. They are about getting players ready for the season ahead. People who take the results of pre-season games seriously need help.

3. Arsenal’s new signings will fit in well.

That’s what happens when you stop shopping at the bargain basement in the transfer window and sign quality players, they tend to assimilate in to the squad better. Chambers already looks like he is more experienced than his 19 years, Alexis Sanchez is class who, while short of fitness, has already shown that he will run himself in to the ground for the club, and Mathieu Debuchy, despite looking like David Bentley’s brother, will mean that Sagna will not be missed.

4. Arsenal have a wealth of options.

As long as they keep them all fit. Injury problems have been the bane of Arsenal’s life over the last few seasons. If new boy Shad Forsythe can help keep them all fit then Arsene Wenger’s biggest headache will be how to keep Sanchez, Giroud, Sanogo, Campbell, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Ozil, Cazorla, Walcott, Gnabry, Podolski, Wilshere and Ramsey all happy.

5. Arsenal still need a defensive signing.

They’ve needed a holding midfielder for a number of seasons and this looks like it could finally be the summer when one arrives.